Liberty University and AutoNation Cure Bowl Enter Bowl Agreement for 2018 and 2019

LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty Athletics and the AutoNation Cure Bowl have announced a two-year bowl agreement for the 2018 and 2019 football seasons.

The secondary bowl agreement gives Liberty football its first bowl tie-in during the program’s inaugural FBS season.

“It is a great honor for Liberty University and our football program to enter into a bowl agreement with the AutoNation Cure Bowl for 2018 and 2019. The mission and values of Liberty University and the AutoNation Cure Bowl align well, and we appreciate Alan Gooch and his board affording us this opportunity,” said Liberty Director of Athletics Ian McCaw. “The AutoNation Cure Bowl and Orlando Sports Foundation are widely recognized for providing a first class destination experience for the participating teams and their fans.”

The AutoNation Cure Bowl is played each December at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla. The game is televised nationally on CBS Sports Network and broadcast live on iHeart Radio’s 96.9 The Game. The 2018 AutoNation Cure Bowl will be played on Dec. 15, while the 2019 AutoNation Cure Bowl will be contested on Dec. 21.

“We certainly have appreciated Liberty University’s interest being a part of Orlando’s AutoNation Cure Bowl and our mission to bring teams together to find a cure for cancer,” said Alan Gooch, Executive Director of the Orlando Sports Foundation. “It’s been great to work with President Jerry Falwell, Athletic Director Ian McCaw and Coach Turner Gill in Liberty’s agreement to back up our primary partners, the Sun Belt and American Athletic Conference. It would be an honor if the AutoNation Cure Bowl is able to host Liberty University’s first bowl appearance in program history here in Orlando.”

Teams from the Sun Belt Conference and American Athletic Conference are scheduled to play each year in the AutoNation Cure Bowl. However, in years in which either conference does not have enough deserving teams, defined as meeting the six qualifying win threshold, other FBS teams may be substituted before consideration would be given to five-win teams.

Although Liberty is currently in the middle of its two-year FBS transition process, the NCAA bylaws do have provisions for the Flames to qualify for a bowl game in 2018 provided Liberty has successfully transitioned to year two of its FBS transitional status and is a deserving team.

Rise With Us: The Process

On Feb. 16, 2017, the NCAA approved Liberty’s waiver request to begin the two-year FBS reclassification process. Liberty completed its final season as a FCS program in 2017, playing as a member of the Big South Conference.

The Flames will host their first FBS home game against Old Dominion on Sept. 1, 2018, the first of four FBS teams to visit Williams Stadium in 2018 to meet the FBS reclassification criteria. The 2018 home schedule also features FBS matchups against North Texas (Sept. 22), Troy (Oct. 13) and New Mexico State (Nov. 24).

Fans who purchased season tickets by the priority deadline of May 15 will have priority for seat assignments. For more information about becoming a season ticket holder, please contact the Flames Ticket Office at (434) 582-SEAT (7328) or tickets@liberty.edu.

Fans can support Liberty Football and enjoy special game-day privileges by joining the Flames Club. The Flames Club exists to underwrite Liberty Athletics’ three-fold mission to train Champions for Christ, provide a world-class student-athlete experience and achieve victory with integrity.

Flames Club membership starts at just $60 and members can enjoy preferred parking, seating and pregame hospitality benefits, based upon membership level.

Bringing Teams Together to Find a Cure for Cancer. The AutoNation Cure Bowl is more than a game. It’s a celebration of the women who are living with breast cancer today and those who will face it tomorrow.

The AutoNation Cure Bowl is an NCAA college football bowl game played each December at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The game is televised nationally on CBS Sports Network and broadcast live on iHeart Radio’s 96.9 The Game.

Funds raised from the AutoNation Cure Bowl directly benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Since 2015, the bowl has raised a collective $3.55 million dollars to benefit breast cancer research this includes Orlando Sports Foundation’s direct contribution of $300,000, and AutoNation’s direct contribution of $3,250,000.

From funds raised, almost one million dollars has gone to Dr. Annette Khaled, professor at the UCF College of Medicine’s Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences and head of the medical school’s cancer research division.

About the Orlando Sports Foundation

The Orlando Sports Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to raising funding and awareness for organizations working to find a cure for cancer. OSF was founded in May 2008 and is dedicated to raising funding and awareness for organizations working to find a cure for cancer. OSF hosts many fundraising events throughout the year including benefiting a short list of cancer and cancer research causes. OSF’s signature event is the AutoNation Cure Bowl, which benefits Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

The AutoNation Cure Bowl is more than a game. Played on the third Saturday in December each year at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, this NCAA college football bowl game is televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.

Funds raised from the AutoNation Cure Bowl directly benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Read More